PEORIA, Ill. ?
Junior
Skye Johnson (Olympia Fields, Ill./Marian Catholic) scored the first seven points of the game, helping Bradley jump out to a 23-0 lead against Truman State and the Braves never looked back as they closed out the exhibition portion of the schedule with an 83-35 romp over the Bulldogs Sunday afternoon at Carver Arena.
Bradley (2-0 in exhibition games) connected on six of nine shots to open the game, while holding the Bulldogs scoreless for the first 10:43 of the contest to take a 23-0 lead with just over nine minutes remaining in the first half. Johnson scored nine of the Braves' first 21 points and also added two assists and one blocked shot during the opening run.
The Braves defense forced Truman State to miss its first 16 shots from the field and five Bulldog turnovers over the first 10:43 of play. Truman State finally got on the scoreboard when senior forward Georgia Mueller, the younger sister of former Bradley standout Genny Mueller, connected on a jumper in the lane with 9:17 remaining.
Bradley kept up the pressure the remainder of the half, pushing the first-half lead to as many as 36 points (44-8) before the Bulldogs' Erin Mayes knocked down a three-pointer at the buzzer to give Bradley a 44-11 lead at the break. The Braves shot 58 percent from the field in the first half, while limiting Truman State to 4-for-24 shooting (16.7 percent). Bradley forced 15 Bulldog turnovers in the opening 20 minutes and boasted a 24-10 edge in rebounding at the half.
Truman State (0-1 in exhibition games) cut the Braves lead to 27 points in the early moments of the second half, but freshman guard Michelle Lund (Sioux City, Iowa/Bishop Heelan) nailed back-to-back three-pointers and dished out an assist to highlight a 13-2 BU run which pushed the lead to 57-19 with just over 12 minutes to play. Bradley led by as many as 50 points and cruised to the 83-35 victory.
Lund led the Braves in scoring with a game-high 12 points in 21 minutes of play. Johnson scored all 11 of her points in the first half and finished a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, while also dishing out three assists and collecting two steals in just 15 minutes of action. Sophomore Sonya Harris (Riverdale, Ill. /Thornton) saw just 16 minutes, but finished with 11 points, 13 rebounds, three blocks and two steals to help lead BU. Three other Bradley players scored eight or more points and 11 of 13 BU players who saw the floor scored in the contest.
Erin Mayes connected on 4-of-5 shots off the bench to lead Truman State with 11 points. The Bulldogs shot 27.1 percent for the game and were forced into 28 turnovers.
Bradley will open the regular season Saturday when the Braves host Loyola-Chicago at 2:05 p.m. at Lorene Ramsey Gym in East Peoria, Ill. The game will be broadcast in the Peoria area on WMBD 1470 AM.
